Housing News Digest
Housing News Digest
The Tenants' Union Housing News Digest compiles our pick of items from all the latest tenancy and housing media, sent once per week, on Thursdays.
Below is the Digest archive from November 2020 onwards. From time to time you will find additional items in the archive that did not make it into the weekly Digest email. Earlier archives are here, where you can also find additional digests by other organisations.
Our main email newsletter, Tenant News is sent once every two months. You can subscribe or update your subscription preferences for any of our email newsletters here.
See notes about the Digest and a list of other contributors here. Many thanks to those contributors for sharing links with us.
We love sharing the news and hope you find it informative! We're very happy to deliver it for free, but if you find it valuable, can you help cover the extra costs incurred by making a donation?
Archive
Insurance giant GIO pursues Horsham couple for almost $78,000 over fire in rental property
Amy Bainbridge and Lucy Kent ABC (No paywall)Lauren Arnett was preparing dinner on a Sunday evening last year in the kitchen of the rental property she shared with her partner. Within seconds, her relaxed Sunday evening went up in smoke — quite literally. "I was preparing [dinner] and just had some oil on the stove," she said. "It was like an electric kind of solid hob, which meant that it was hard to know how much heat was coming out of it. "I called Luke over and asked him: 'how hot do you think this is?' "And in the process of us figuring that out, it burst into flames." ... But in June this year, 10 months after the fire, they received a letter from insurer GIO. ... Suncorp, the parent company of GIO, released a statement after being contacted by the ABC. “We encourage the tenants to call us as soon as possible to provide us with some details as we believe we can resolve this claim promptly, including the ability to reduce or waive costs," a spokeswoman said. ... [But] Consumer group Choice and suburban legal service Westjustice are alarmed at the number of similar cases to the Horsham couple. ... [But Choice's Erin Turner] said New Zealand had "a really clear system" and laws in place to protect renters from landlord insurers making claims." ... [In Australia, she] conceded it was a "complex" area of law, covering state and territory rental laws or property laws, that intersected with federal insurance laws.
https://www.abc.net.au/news/2021-09-09/gio-suncorp-insurance-com…
# Hot topic Australia, Rent, Repairs, Federal Government, State Government.Powers to ban second homes in proposed new Government crackdown
Aaron Greenaway (No paywall)From the United Kingdom ... A triple clampdown is being mooted as Whitehall looks to control the impact of holiday lets on communities. Second homes could face bans under new legislation reportedly being considered by the Government. It's been reported that the Communities Secretary, Robert Jenrick is planning a range of reforms that will give councils the power to ban the creation of second homes if they are deemed damaging to the community without a referendum on the issue. The changes will form part of a 'triple clampdown' which it is reported will alleviate some of the extreme housing pressures in Devon and Cornwall along with granting Councils powers to insist developers build more starter homes as opposed to focusing on properties likely to be attractive as holiday homes. New changes to planning rules could also be on the horizon, too, with a potential change of the rules to require owners of a property to get planning permission before conversion to a holiday let. (CornwallLive)
https://www.cornwalllive.com/news/cornwall-news/powers-ban-secon…
# International, Rent, Housing market, Short-term holiday letting.Would you advise a friend not to buy off the plan?
Jimmy Thomson (No paywall)There was a survey of 500 apartment blocks conducted earlier this year by NSW Building Commissioner David Chandler’s team. It found that more than one-third of new buildings had serious defects. However, just as chilling was the claim that 90 per cent of strata managers and committee members said they would not recommend buying an apartment off the plan to a friend, family member or business associate. (Flat Chat)
# NSW, Strata, Housing market.Housing crisis ousting residents, stunting growth in Australian mining communities
Larissa Waterson ABC (No paywall)Increasing rent prices along with high demand for housing are leaving many rural Australians out of pocket and overloading social services, according to social service groups and local councils. Meanwhile, prospective residents are discouraged from relocating to regional and rural communities that are crying out for new blood.
https://www.abc.net.au/news/2021-09-09/mining-communities-housin…
# Australia, Rent, Housing affordability, Housing market, Regional NSW.The banks beating first-time buyers to new homes
Imogen Tew, Hannah Al-Othman and Cameron Charters (No paywall)For first-time buyers looking for an affordable home within a reasonable distance of London, the flats in Peterborough’s newest development tick every possible box. ... [But] they found themselves up against a serious contender: Lloyds Banking Group. Britain's second largest bank scooped up 45 homes ... off the plan when they went on sale in September 2018. (The Times)
https://www.thetimes.co.uk/article/the-banks-beating-first-time-…
# International, Affordable housing, Housing market.The markets performing best in our biggest cities
Kate Burke Domain (No paywall)When it comes to Australia’s booming property prices, it’s no secret that not all markets are created equal. Each city has its own story to tell, and even within one city, different segments of a market can yield very different results. While the outer suburbs have led the charge in some cities, it’s the inner-city markets that have delivered the greater capital gains in others, the latest market update from PRD Real Estate shows. So which market segments have been seeing the strongest price growth in some of our biggest cities?
https://www.domain.com.au/news/the-markets-performing-best-in-ou…
# Australia, Housing market, Tax.Lenders mortgage insurance jumps as house prices boom, but most home buyers don't realise it only protects the bank
Emilia Terzon ABC (No paywall)Australia's COVID property boom has pushed more people into paying for costly mortgage insurance that protects their bank, while only adding to the borrower's mounting pile of debt. Exclusive data given to ABC News shows there has been a rise in the number of lenders mortgage insurance (LMI) policies being taken out. LMI has been a contentious financial product for years. It is a lump sum insurance product that many lenders expect people to pay for when they take out a mortgage with less than a 20 per cent deposit. While the borrower pays for it, it does not protect them.
https://www.abc.net.au/news/2021-09-09/lenders-mortgage-insuranc…
# Australia, Home ownership, Tax.Problems loom while south-east Queensland’s population booms
Tony Moore The Sydney Morning Herald (Paywall)A funding shortfall of just $1 million is holding up planning for a major multi-billion-dollar rail project to Brisbane’s west. ... At the heart of the issue is the incredible population growth being experienced in the western corridor.
https://www.smh.com.au/politics/queensland/problems-loom-while-s…
# Australia, Planning and development.